Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and other Iranian leaders make so many shocking statements that many people focus only on their words. But the real action and cause for concern lie in their deeds. Iran is embarking on an increasingly aggressive campaign of diplomacy that would be replete with irony were it not so dangerous.

Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz called Monday for a naval blockade of Iran within two to six months, saying sanctions have failed to convince the Islamic republic to abandon its nuclear weapons program.

(JTA) -- The United States arranged the 9/11 attacks "to save the Zionist regime," Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the U.N. General Assembly.

After suggesting that U.S. officials at the highest levels were complicit in the 9/11 attacks, he called on the United Nations to establish "an independent fact-finding group" to investigate the attacks. The U.S. delegation walked out of Ahmadinejad's speech Thursday at the United Nations, as did all 27 European Union delegations, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Costa Rica, according to reports.

In the theater of the absurd that is too often the United Nations, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will participate in a meeting on disarmament when he attends the 65th session of the General Assembly this week. This is a figure who has united much of the international community to condemn his regime’s nuclear program. And somehow, the United Nations will welcome him at discussions on disarmament. The hypocrisy meter is on overdrive.

Will Erdogan's victory lead to further strain in relations following flotilla incident, or is it an opportunity?

09/14/2010 - 20:00

Joshua Mitnick

Israel Correspondent

Tel Aviv - A resounding victory at the polls Sunday for Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's referendum to remake the country's constitution and weaken the secular forces in government has spurred Israeli uneasiness about deteriorating ties with an important regional ally.

Though the referendum was about advancing civil liberties in Turkey and weakening the influence of the secular army, the wider-than-expected margin of victory was also seen as a broad approval of Erdogan's foreign policy shift toward Israel.

(JTA) -- A major Jewish umbrella organization again has called on the ambassadors of United Nations member states to walk out on a speech by Iran's president.

Anticipating that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad again will seek to address the General Assembly this year, leaders of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations sent letters asking delegates to leave should Ahmadinejad be allowed to speak before the international body.

If for no other reason, The Atlantic, and its national correspondent Jeffrey Goldberg, deserve much credit for putting the threat of a nuclear Iran front and center in the mainstream media, with Goldberg’s cover story this month, “The Point Of No Return.”